Balboa Sports Center

Today we went to Balboa Sports Center, a hidden gem in LA! We had heard of this park and even seen it in the distance from the road, but never ventured to check it out. We are really glad that we did because this park is amazing!

There are a lot of basketball courts, tennis courts, handball, soccer fields, baseball diamonds and open space!

A great place for a run or to walk your dogs.

Beautiful trees and greenery.

Gated Playground

Rock wall!

Shaded swings

Cool climbing contraption

Semi-decent/fairly clean bathrooms

Pros and Cons

Pros
Not very well known, so not very crowded
LOTS of free parking
Beautiful greenery
Semi new playgrounds
Gated playground
Large playground
Shade over playground
Public Bathrooms
Sand to play

Cons
If you have 2 kids, watching both of them on the playground can be tough since it's so big.
Little kids area (versus the bigger kids play area) isn't as shaded
Bathrooms are a bit of a trek from the playground

Check out our friends over at Babble Dabble Do!

www.babbledabbledo.com 

From a Parent's Perspective this park is awesome. Sometimes taking your kids to the park can be overwhelming due to the amount of kids there. I'm not sure how it is during the weekend, but during the week day it's a safe, cool, shaded spot to let your kids wander around. Some of the higher rock climbing walls and other climbing contraptions require more attention with the littler kids as they get scared being up so high, but that's what parks are for, to teach confidence.

From a Kid's Perspective this park is 3 thumbs up. My girls loved it, and wanted to bring their bike next time because there is so much space to ride. They loved the different equipment that we haven't seen at any other parks and the freedom to just explore without a worrying father that they would run away!

Address: 17015 Burbank Blvd, Encino, CA 91316

Phone:(818) 756-9642

Franklin Canyon Park

Today we took the Grandparents on a fun adventure to Franklin Canyon Park (Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area)! We had a great time exploring nature, walking around the lake, going into the Sooky Goldman Nature Center and having a picnic on one of the many picnic tables.

A cool indigenous bamboo hut! 

The amphitheater with the Nature Center in the background.

Zoe took a selfie!

Ducks 

We were a little weary of this outhouse...

Until we saw that it was actually nice inside!

Super clean bathrooms

Great air conditioned space with awesome activities for kids!

Pros and Cons

Pros

Nature! 

Air conditioned educational activity area

Snacks for sale in Nature Center

Clean bathrooms

Hiking

Animals

Picnic Tables

Lots of free parking

Cons

There are a lot of "sting bugs" around the picnic area

Bathrooms can be far if you're out hiking

Animals (we were warned to beware of unfriendly animals!)

Kids don't want to leave

From a Parent's Perspective this is an awesome place to take your kids. It's educational, it's full on nature-esque and a great place to skip out on the heat during the middle of the day. There are plenty of places to take your kid to the potty or if it's an emergency there are plenty of trees! (We're potty training ... can you tell?)

From a Kid's Perspective it's awesome. Being from LA any chance to escape into the woods is exciting. I like to let my kids "lead the way" and explore any and every crevice of the place. There are ducks, bullfrogs, lizards and a ton of other fun things to touch and experience.

Address: 2600 Franklin Canyon Drive, Beverly Hills

Phone: (310) 858-7272

We HIGHLY recommend this place!

Panorama City Recreational Center

To beat the heat of the valley summers we invited our friends to join us at the Panorama City Recreational Center, or what we like to call, the Splash Pad! We had gone last summer with the same group of friends from Zoe's preschool and invited everyone out again for good ole' water fun!

Everyone had a blast. Indie wasn't too sure about the water as there were A LOT OF kids for a Thursday afternoon, but there were swings so we were good. ;)

Pros and Cons

Pros

Perfect activity for hot summer day

Water and dry activities

Soft ground on playground

Lots of picnic tables

Good amounts of shade

Restrooms available 

Free Street/Lot Parking 

Snack vendors

Cons

Very busy! Lots of kids!

Port-o-potties only (ewwww!)

Parking is hard to come by on busy days

Vendors with attractive toys your kids want to buy every 5 seconds

From a Parents' Perspective this is a great place to hang out for a few hours. While it can be a little overwhelming with the amount of kids and parents, your kids will love it and remember it all summer. Who knows where the water comes from so make sure you give your kids a bath after you get home. The vendors are a little annoying because there's literally vendors selling water toys every 5 feet. And you always want to keep eyes on your kids as the water park is right next to the street and with so many other kiddos running around it's easy for them to get lost.

From a Kids' Perspective, as long as they love water play, they will love this. My oldest (4 3/4) absolutely enjoyed jumping into the water and getting soaked. My younger (3) wasn't so sure and all the kids kind of turned her off from getting wet.  There were dry activities (playgrounds and swings) for them to play on so it's the best of both worlds!

Address: 

8600 Hazeltine AvePanorama City, CA 91412

Hours:

Mon 9:00 am - 9:30 pm
Tue 9:00 am - 9:30 pm
Wed 9:00 am - 9:30 pm
Thu 9:00 am - 9:30 pm
Fri 9:00 am - 9:30 pm
Sat 9:00 am - 5:00 pm
Sun Closed